Hey guys, I've been searching for a solution to this, but unable to find any clear answers so any help is appreciated.

I have a 2003 Dodge Ram 1500 Quad Cab 4x4, and I've recently been noticing that when I hit a bump going around a corner at higher speeds the truck really gets out of shape. It's like the front tires are losing contact with the pavement, then the truck shimmies while regaining control. This seems to be getting worse, and is especially annoying with a trailer. Also, maybe it's just in my head, but the truck seems to be riding rougher over bumpy roads in general lately. What kind of parts in the front end should I consider replacing to solve this problem?

 

When was the last time you replaced the ball joints, shocks, sway bar links and bushings?

And I know this isn't as fun, but maybe slow down a bit.

 

My guess would be shocks, I had the same issue when I used to have my 240sx

 

Definitely not fun... I bought the truck with 88k miles on it, and as far as I know none of that has ever been done. It has 93k miles on it now.

I don't think it is the shocks because they seem to be functioning properly as long as you are going straight.

 

I would check them anyways just because it is really easy to see if there is a leak and they are pretty cheap and easy to fix, at very least you can rule it out.

 

Shocks are usually only good for 60k.

 

Could easily be shocks. Front-end components could need some attention, too. Don't know why anyone would tow a trailer at high speed, though.

 

I guess it depends on your definition of high speeds. I was referring to highway speeds of 65 - 75 mph. It is just a tiny aluminum trailer with 2 dirt bikes on it.

 

Gotcha. You gotta understand we see so many younger guys come in here who define high speeds as just that, high speeds AKA reckless speeds. A small trailer will always bounce more than a longer one because of the weight in general and/or the weight it has on it. An aluminum ttrailer would be worse. But this has nothing to do with your original issue and post.

Take your truck to a shop that does front end alignments and let them check it out. Most will do it for free and give you a quote on what needs to be repaired/replaced

 

Update: I dropped it off at the shop last night. They called me this morning and said that the shocks, and everything in the front end look good and tight. He said that there was some uneven wear on the front tires so he is going to do a front end alignment, and rotate the tires.

He said he thinks the toe is off causing the front end to dart in these situation, which seems to make sense. Hopefully this fixes the problem. Thanks for the help everyone.